TanglesNisha Wadhwani

The boy, of course, hadn’t done anything.

She knew what it was, didn’t she, to be stuck in the middle? To be caught between people you loved and

forced to sever ties without any choice of your own? To be shunned because of where you came from?The boy didn’t love her. She hadn’t deluded herself into believing such disappointing ideas. More often than

not, hedidn’t even know who she was. She still knew who he was, even if she didn’t love him either. No one would know if she walked, no one but her.

She huffed and made a sharp detour away from the door. I hadn’t expected to see him, she comforted as she went to the rug on the center of the cold tiled floor,

toeing off her shoes at the edge of it. This just caught me off guard.She couldn’t know how regal she looked, sinking onto the floor beside him, but her voice was warm when

she spoke. “Hi, sweetie. Remember me?” When he didn’t answer, his brow scrunching with the effort it took to

remember her with his deep brown eyes narrowing on her face, her smile didn’t dim. “It’s Alina didi. Remember?”His pale skin smoothed as he nodded. His face had gotten longer since the last time she’d seen him, lost

some of the baby fat. “Yeah.”“How are you doing? Are you okay?”“Good. Yes.”She frowned in disapproval at the half bagel he held, the butter and jelly squeezing out from between the

slices. It was no snack for a young boy. But the budget was low, and the attendance high. She knew the flaws of

the society as well as she knew the perks. It was the price of being so incredibly involved with everything. Just, she had to admit, as she knew the kids would appreciate this much more than anything even remotely

healthy or culturally enlightening. Why was she sitting here? She didn’t understand kids.“Is it any good?”

He nodded, taking a small bite as his eyes never left hers. “Cold, but yeah.”

“Well, you’ll have a nice hot dinner with me tonight. I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Okay.” He gave her a brief, one-armed hug, and her hand was light when she ruffled his hair before getting

back to her feet.

“Have fun!” Knowing the encounter had made her an additional several minutes late, she hurried out of the

furnished basement up the stairs after slipping her shoes back on, her long flowing skirt billowing around her legs

dramatically.

“Don’t you make a picture?”

Alina brushed her dark, tumbling hair away from her face as she looked up at Adrian. “Oh, hi. Did you find a

spot?”

“Right out front. Figured I’d step in and see what was keeping you. You look great.”